Ethical and Social Concerns

Unfortunately, there are several ethical concerns that arise when taking spatial computing into consideration. While high-performance mobile computing is becoming more and more readily available and VR systems have become more cost-effective, spatial computing systems are still restricted in terms of availability. Furthermore, additional costs must be accounted for in terms of other hardware and software requirements. One might even require special accessories or high-resolution displays (Vardhan, 2023). Not everyone has the means to buy such items or take part in such activities. The following is true, especially in underdeveloped areas of the world. Additionally, social isolation is another issue that may arise and is closely related to the concerns of effects seen in digital learning (Taghian et al., 2023). Though, in the professional medical field social isolation is not likely a big concern as spatial technologies will be used only when necessary. If unsupervised, however, a patient who is using XR for recovery may be susceptible to this issue as they may not be held to the same workplace standard and are using spatial technology for treatment rather than operations. Overdependence on these technologies could be significantly harmful to one’s mental state and well-being. Extended exposure to virtual environments may be harmful in the way that it misconstrues an individual’s perspective drastically. While quite useful in handling everyday tasks, even outside of the medical field, virtual worlds often omit small details such as flaws a natural environment would have. This may result in conditions such as depersonalization or derealization disorder as well as dissociative identity disorder (Morvan et al., 2020).